Perceived similarity to another person determines which mind-reading strategy is used

Evidence

But what determines when each strategy is employed? A common answer has emerged from philosophers (Nichols & Stich, 2003), social cognition researchers (Ames, 2004), and neuroscientists (Mitchell, 2009). People tend to see others as either similar to or different from themselves and that determination underlies the strategy used for mind reading. To the extent that another person is seen as similar, the perceiver is more likely to rely on simulation. — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 380

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the outgroup-vs-ingroup judgment literature; simulation for ingroup members, theory for outgroups, echoes biases in cross-group empathy. — connects to: Perceived physical resemblance licenses presumptive knowledge of others’ inner lives — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race: Reflections on…, 70; Similarity-attraction operates by linking the stranger to the self — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition: Attitudes,…, 131